moderator band on echo?

[kizzie100]

On a recent echo it showed a moderator band - can anyone explain what this and if there are any implications? I did  ask the technician but never really got a straight answer.

[EchoTech]

I am not a doctor.

I am sorry that you lost your daughter at such a young age.  

Every person that has a right ventricle (not everyone does) has a moderator band, and I mean everyone on the planet with no exceptions.

A moderator band is a thick ligamentous tissue that form near the bottom of the right ventricle.  There are no implications associated with it.  It belongs there.  

As far as a biological aspect as to why it developed there, I have no clue.

I don't believe there is a connection between long QT and moderator bands.  I've never run across any studies saying anything like that, but I can be wrong.

Good luck.

[EchoTech]

I am not a doctor.

There is no moderator band in the left ventricle, ever. The moderator band always goes in the right ventricle. The most likely thing that they saw is what we'd call false tendons.  It is not bad that you have them, and it is just a variant of normal with no bad consequences.

A slow pulse can be indicative of some things, but if you are pretty active and fit, then a low resting pulse rate is a normal thing.  The normal heart rate range is 60 to 100 bpm.  

[debbn]

I was diagnosed with heart disease also known as prolapse valve on my left valve. I have had low blood pressure which has been 97/57 or around there. The low blood pressure is always on my left arm, not my right so they keep taking it again and it is still the same. I have been having dizziness often, just about every day lately. I don't know why. I feel really tired, but I still go to work feeling like this. I often feel pain in my chest that comes and goes, but the heart specialist said this may happen and i should be able to live a normal life, but it could get worse later down the road. Is the dizziness related to the heart problem and the low blood pressure? Deb

[kizzie100]

My reason for concern about the moderator band is that my 21 year old daughter  recently died with a suggestion of Long QT syndrome - my son has had to have an ICD fittted - as he has had some suspcious incidences when having bloods taken, injections  (his heart actually stopped) and hurting himself -  I too have recently had a defib fitted as I had an unexplained cardiac arrest 8 years ago.  We were all tested for Long QT then but nothing conclusive was recognised.  Having said that ECG alone is surely not suffiecent to diagnose Long QT.  Ironically I work in cardiology and have done for 11 years how can these things be missed!!!! :-(   I had every test possible to find out the cause of my cardiac arrest i.e. echo, ETT, 24 hour tape, cardiac catheterisation, EP study which supposedly showed nothing suggested Long QT but an EP specialist has said that it did apparently during angiogram I had OTc interval in excess of 600ms.  Altough in hindsight I had a Reveal device implanted that did show a blip around 7 am in the morning which I never thought much about but now realise that was when my alarm clock went off!!!  If these things had been spotted maybe my daughter would still be alive. !!   All out extended family are being tested resulting in my nephew showing a QTc intervals in excess of 500 ms.  This seems a never ending spiral !!  

[jdman73]

I had a question on this matter . I just had an echo a couple hours ago . The technician showed me a moderator valve in my right ventricle then he said it was rare but he found one in my left ventricle as well ? He said about 20 % of the population have this . So my question ... Is there complications with this or is there enough study done ? I have looked on the internet and can't seem to find much info on the left moderator valve ? I am 37 and otherwise pretty healthy . I do have a fairly slow pulse at times that had me concerned . It is around 50 to 60 at  rest .. That is the reason for the echo . I also had a nuclear stress test earlier this week .. I have not spoke with my dr. yet . I am nervous about this finding , any info will be appreciated .

[Cleveland Clinic]

It's a normal finding in the right ventricle of the heart.  It contains part of the electrical system of the heart.